The Satyr's Curse (The Satyr's Curse Series Book 1)
Page 25
Jazzmyn flashed back to her night with Julian and then her tryst with Kyle. A sickening feeling gripped her, and her eyes went to Ms. Helen. “Who’s the father?”
“All in good time.” She patted Jazzmyn’s hand and glimpsed the tomb next to them. “Best be pickin’ this stuff up and gettin’ you home.”
“But how do we get home? I came with Julian and….” Jazzmyn paused as a curious thought hit her. “How did you get in here? The front gates were locked when we arrived.”
Ms. Helen leaned her head back and let out a loud cackle. “Girl, don’t you remember? Mr. Reggie been the caretaker of this place for over twenty years. I got a key to the gate.”
Jazzmyn began to laugh, and as a rush of giddiness flowed through her veins, Ms. Helen tugged at her hand.
“You’ll be all right now,” she professed in a reassuring voice.
Jazzmyn’s laughter died and her countenance once again grew fearful. “But he’ll be back, won’t he?”
Ms. Helen slowly nodded her head. “Yeah, he’ll be back. It ain’t over yet, Jazzmyn.”
Epilogue
Jazzmyn stood on the wide balcony of the second floor of her old home, looking out at the bright green of spring filling the towering oak trees in the front garden. She smelled the vibrant energy in the air and closed her eyes to take in the myriad of birdsongs.
“Jazzmyn,” a man’s voice called behind her.
She turned to see Kyle coming toward her. He was dressed for a day at the restaurant in blue jeans and a dark blue T-shirt. In his arms he carefully carried a small bundle wrapped in a pink blanket decorated with small teddy bears.
As he stood before Jazzmyn, he worriedly inspected her dark green eyes. “You sleep all right last night? I thought I heard you get up.”
Jazzmyn took the pink bundle from his arms. “I got up to check on her.”
“No more nightmares?” he asked, furrowing his brow.
Jazzmyn shook her head. “No more nightmares.”
Kyle nodded to the baby in her arms. “I think she’s hungry again.” Kyle nuzzled the baby’s pink cheek with his finger. “Didn’t you just feed her?”
“About two hours ago.” She repositioned the child in her arms and kissed the small pink nose protruding from beneath the blanket.
“Kid eats like a horse. Are they supposed to do that at three months?”
“She’s growing,” Jazzmyn insisted.
“She’s growing into a moose,” Kyle joked with a smirk. “When my mother comes to visit tomorrow, maybe we should ask if we are feeding her too much.”
“She’s got a healthy appetite. There’s nothing wrong with that.”
“Jazzmyn, a three-month-old baby that eats all the time and sleeps through the night is a little weird.”
“Dr. Marcus says she is developmentally right where she needs to be,” she argued.
Kyle raised his hands in resignation. “I just remember my mother telling me what a pain in the ass I was as a baby. I would cry all the time and was fussy as hell about food.”
“If you ask me, you’re still fussy about food,” Jazzmyn chided.
He frowned at her. “That’s why I’m a chef, darling.”
“Well, maybe our daughter takes after me. My father always said I was the perfect baby.”
Kyle rubbed his hand along the child’s pink cheek. “She sure does look like you, except for the brown eyes.”
Jazzmyn gave him an encouraging smile. “My father had brown eyes.”
“I know.” Kyle kissed Jazzmyn on the cheek. “I’ll try and make it home for a little while after the lunch rush to give you a break.”
Jazzmyn’s heart skipped with happiness as she took in his bright blue eyes. “Thank you, Kyle…for everything.”
He lowered his eyes to the infant in her arms. “Just promise me that one day you will let me make an honest woman out of you, Jazz.”
Jazzmyn studied the strong curve of his jaw and recalled what Julian had threatened to do to him. “One day we’ll get married, but for now, I’m happy the way we are.”
“Well, my mother sure isn’t happy about our living together, so you better get ready. She’s going to give you an earful when she comes to visit.”
Jazzmyn nodded her head. “I’m ready.”
He gave her one last, loving smile and headed back to the open french door that led to the nursery.
Jazzmyn gazed down at the baby in her arms, and ran her hand over the tufts of thick, black, curly hair on her daughter’s small head.
“What are we going to do with you, Jaqueline?”
The little girl happily squirmed in her mother’s arms. Jazzmyn reached for a tiny hand flaying about in the air and kissed it.
She heard the slam of the front door and watched as Kyle made his way down the bricked walkway to his old blue pickup. Before Kyle climbed into the truck, he turned and waved.
Jazzmyn lifted the baby in her arms and reached for her little hand, trying to make her wave good-bye.
“Wave bye-bye to Daddy,” Jazzmyn encouraged.
But the child loudly fussed and Jazzmyn placed her back against her chest. She hummed to her daughter and the baby instantly stilled and was content.
“Just like your father,” she whispered.
Jazzmyn gazed out over the awakening world around her and her heart broke for the child in her arms. She did not know how long they had, but she knew one day her nightmares would come back to torture her. And when they did, Julian Devereau would return.
“He’s coming, Jaqueline,” Jazzmyn softly said. “One day your father will come for you. But I will never let him have you.” She kissed her baby’s forehead. “I promise I will do everything I can to save you from his day of reckoning.”
The Satyr’s Curse II: The Reckoning is available now.
About the Author
Alexandrea Weis is an advanced practice registered nurse who was born and raised in New Orleans. Having been brought up in the motion picture industry, she learned to tell stories from a different perspective and began writing at the age of eight. Infusing the rich tapestry of her hometown into her award-winning novels, she believes that creating vivid characters makes a story moving and memorable. A permitted/certified wildlife rehabber with the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries, Weis rescues orphaned and injured wildlife. She lives with her husband and pets in New Orleans.
To read more about Alexandrea Weis or her books, you can go to the following sites:
Website: http://www.alexandreaweis.com/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/authoralexandreaweis
Twitter: https://twitter.com/alexandreaweis
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1211671.Alexandrea_Weis
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/apwrncs/
TSU: https://www.tsu.co/alexandreaweis